LANTERNE

SPRING

Sand
cacti
when there's rain
desert blooming
hats.

    Today's poem is a Lanterne and I wouldn't know the term except my friend, children's poet, Matt Forrest challenged me to write four poems in four days and then find four friends to tag and ask them to write poems too.  Except, the last time I did this I had a hard time finding four friends who hadn't already been tapped to write poems.  AND this is Memorial Day weekend.  It is my birthday weekend and I don't want my friends to have to be glued to their computers posting poems when it is going to be a great weekend to be outdoors.
For my birthday, my husband is taking me caving.  Doesn't that sound like fun?  It is something I've never done before and I'm looking forward to it
  But, let's get back to the lanterne, because that is your poetry challenge for today.  Try writing one.  A lanterne is a form of cinquain poem.  It has five lines.  The title can work to make a sixth line for you or go without a title.  The first line has only one syllable, then each successive line adds one more syllable, until you get to the last line which has only one syllable again.  It is called a lanterne because if the poem is set with a certer margin, or centered on the page it looks like a lantern.  Each line should be able to stand on its own.

SPRING

Sand

cacti

when there's rain

desert blooming

hats.

That is a funny looking lantern to me.  I originally ended this poem with the word spring (and I didn't have a title),  but when I went back to edit, I was thinking of the Mother's Day hats that the Saguaro wear--pretty white flowers in a ring on the top.  I like the surprise of the hats at the end because when it rains, people put on hats too.  So there is a layered meaning at the end of the poem.

Line 1 = 1 syllable

Line 2 = 2 syllables

Line 3 = 3 syllables

Line 4 = 4 syllables

Line 5 = 1 syllable

An 11 syllable poem can be tricky.

 

   Now it is your turn.  Will you try writing your own lanterne?  If you want, please post your poem in the comments below.

MONGOOSE

copyright 2014, Joy Acey

Mongoose
stops in the grass
his red nose glows brightly
thinking of reindeer and Merry
Christmas.

copyright 2014, Joy Acey

   Today's poem is a form poem--a cinquain.  It's a five line poem with 2 syllables in the first and last lines.  There are four syllables in the second line, six in the third and eight in the fourth line.  Seeing the bright red nose on the mongoose made me think of a re-telling of the Rudolph story set in Africa with eight mongoose instead of reindeer.  Do you think Santa could be a Masai?
   Can you try writing your own cinquain today?  Have fun working on your own poems.

Lantern Poem

copyright 2014, Joy Acey

Wild
wart hogs
trot around
the water hole
run


    The form of this poem is a lantern or lanterne.  I like to think of it as a half cinquain.  It has five lines like a cinquain, but each line has half as many syllables.  So there is one syllable in the first line, then 2,3,4, and 1 syllable in each of the next lines.  This form is difficult because word choice is heavily favored for one syllable words.  Thus the scope of the poem is very limited.  The lantern has fewer words than a haiku.  Plus starting and ending with just one word lines is difficult.  How do you think I did in writing this one?  Now it is your turn to try.
   My friend David Harrison has a poem challenge this month using the word evergreen.  You can find poems using this word on his blog at www.davidlharrison.wordpress.com

So let's see if I can do this, writing a lantern using evergreen.  Since evergreen is a three syllable word, I'll need to split it into two words.  An evergreen is a tree, so I'll use that for my first word.  Now all I need to do is fill in the middle.

Tree
growing
stretching tall
standing ever
green

This is my first draft.  But looking at this, I think if I change this to a pine tree, I can do more.

Pine
growing
loblolly
stretching ever
green

    Have fun trying to write your own lantern poem.

ZEBRA

copyright 2014, Joy Acey

Zebras
stand together
to graze and slowly herd
kicking, bucking, running in grass
feel free.


     Today's poem is a cinquain--a five line poem.  A syllabic form, there are two syllables in the first line.  Four syllables in the second, six, eight, and then two in the last line.  Can you try writing your own cinquain today?  I hope you have fun writing poems.

Thanksgiving Cinquain

Turkey
for Thanksgiving
roasted a golden brown,
family and friends gather to
give thanks.


   I had trouble with the eight syllable line.  I kept counting family as two syllables on one count then three in the next.  I finally had to look up the proper pronunciation of family.  Simple, right?  But, it just goes to show you, it never hurts to double check on syllabic forms.  The cinquain has two syllables in the first line, four, six, eight, and two syllables in the next lines, making a five line poem.  Can you try writing your own cinquain today?  Have fun writing.

Haunted Cinquain

Vampires
will bite your neck
while you sleep through the night
and their hunger demands they suck
your blood.


   This poem is a cinquain.  It is a five line syllabraic poem with 2 syllables in the first line, four in the second, then six and eight for the third and fourth line.  And for the fifth line we're back to two syllables again.  (2,4,6,8,2 syllables.)  Cinquains are fun to write.  Can you take one of your Halloween words and write your own cinquain today.  Have fun writing and playing with words.

A dove
sits up on high
in the old Saguaro
watching doves alit on the fence
below.

Two quails
followed by two 
more quails bobbling along
pacing on the scrubby desert 
running

And then
a fat lizard
races across concrete
in the early morning hot winds
well fed.


      When I woke this morning, quite a production was going on outside my window.  There was even a hummingbird whirring past.  I felt privileged be a part of all the nature in my backyard.  What is going on in your back yard?  Can you write a cinquain about it.

CACTUS WREN CINQUAIN

Poking 
from a dark hole
in the old saguaro
a new-born cactus wren calling
for food.

    Today's poem is a cinquain-- a five line poem with two, four, six, eight and two syllables in the respective lines.  Can you try writing your own cinquain today?  Have fun.

QUAIL

Quail
feathered head,
waddle, scurry, zipping
one single feather
bobwhite



April
time of new leaves
blossoms blooming, new growth
we throw ourselves into the joy
Springtime


     It has been a lovely day.  I saw my first little quailets of the season this morning.  There were about a dozen of them scurrying with a couple of adults.  The little ones are about the size of a walnut.  So when I attended a workshop this afternoon on writing cinquains and haiku, of course I had to write about my morning experience. 

   Can you try writing your own cinquain about something you saw today?  Have fun writing.

GILA WOODPECKER

Drinking
from the feeder
a gila woodpecker
dips his beak and long tongue into
sweetness.


    The gila woodpeckers make it almost impossible for me to keep the hummingbird feeder full with liquid.  They have learned to perch on top of the feeder and tilt it to one side so all the sugar water tilts to one side making it easier for them to drink from a deeper well.  Lately, I've noticed that the finches and thrushes have learned to do the same thing from watching the wood pecker.  Except they tilt the feeder until liquid drips out the side and they can then drink it.   Why must the larger birds steal from smaller birds?  Why is it, it seems to me that the big guys are always trying to take advantage of smaller guys?
  Can you write your own poem about a big taking advantage of a little?  Would this be called bullying among the birds?  Have fun writing.  Oh, did you figure out that the form of this poem is a cinquain?  It is a syllablic form of five lines with two syllables in the first line, four in the second, six in the third, then 8 and finally two syllables in the last line.

APRIL

All flowers blooming,
purple pansies looming
right next to daffodils zooming
in the bending wind, then after
leave us with laughter.


     I've been playing with an acrostic poem based on APRIL today.  Can you try creating your own poem on an April theme?  What are some things that APRIL makes you think of?  Since there are five lines, you might want to shape your poem in one of the five line verses, like limerick or cinquain.  Have fun playing with poetry today.

Prickly Pear Cactus

Budlets
on the paddles
of the prickly pear
soon lush yellow and red flowers
then fruit.


    Today's poem is a cinquain, a five line syllabric poem with 2 syllables in the first line, then 4, 6, 8, 2.   Perhaps this chart will help:

Line 1 = 2 syllables

Line 2 = 4 syllables

Line 3 = 6 syllables

Line 4 = 8 syllables

Line 5 = 2 syllables

    Your challenge for today is to try writing your own cinquain.

    The cinquain is a nonce form invented by Adelaide Crapsey (1878-1914).  The poem has 22 syllables compressed into five lines.  If you enjoy this form, you might enjoy reading Lee Bennett Hopkins' anthology of cinquains, CITY TALK, (Knopf, 1970, photographs by Roy Arenella.)  The poems are presented by seasons from children Hopkins worked with as a consultant for Bank Street College of Education in  New York's Harlem schools.

    Mary Lee Hahn is hosting the Poetry Friday roundup at http://readingyear.blogspot.com/

http://readingyear.blogspot.com

Shopping

Monday

cyber seeking

time to get a head start

on Christmas holiday shopping

click, done

     Did you recognize that this poem is another cinquain.Did you do any on-line shopping yesterday?  I hope your shopping gave you time to be inspired for writing a poem about something you like to do on your computer.  Have fun. 

Post Thanksgiving Cinquain

Eating

dinner again

biscuits and pumpkin pie

bowls of left over turkey soup

Grateful.

   How many days did you eat your turkey?  I've put the left over soup in the freezer now.  It will be wonderful on one of the busy cold December evenings.  Can you write your own turkey poem today?  You pick the form you'd like to use.  Have fun.

Cinquain

Monsoon

Cholla blooming

Creosote scents the air

Cactus wren nests in saguaro

Warm rain

Today's poem is a cinquain.   It is a five line syllabic poem.  The first line has 2 syllables, the second line has 4, the third 6 and the fourth 8, then in the fifth line there are 2 syllables again.

line 1 = 2 syllables

line 2 = 4 syllables

line 3 = 6 syllables

line 4 = 8 syllables

line 5 = 2 syllables

Can you write your own cinquain today?  Mine tells about the desert where I live.  Can you write your cinquain about where you live?  I'd love to read your poem.  You are welcome to leave your creation in the comments below.

Thank you for stopping by and I hope you are enjoying this last day of the holiday weekend.